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This collection of stories and fables includes time-honored folks tales, such as how a poor farmer became the Kitchen God and how the twelve animals of the Chinese zodiac were chosen. It also includes original stories, which draw from the rich tradition of Chinese folklore. Learn how the onion went from stinky outcast to coveted kitchen staple. Read about the Jade Rabbit's devotion to his master, and the Rat's betrayal of his former best friend, the Cat. These stories are built on the timeless themes of friendship and loyalty-as well as the benefits of having a quick wit.

The works of Zhuang Zi have formed part of the canon of Chinese Literature for almost 25 centuries and yet, with the exception of a few translations, they are hardly known in the West. Someone, during the short lived Qin Dynasty when "useless" books were systematically destroyed, either risked his life to protect it from the bonfires or committed it to memory so that it could be republished in more favourable times. Although he does not format his own philosophical outlook, Zhuang Zi cleverly illustrates how the great issues in philosophy affect the lives not only of rulers and thinkers but also the more ordinary members of society.

It requires much study of the Oriental mind to catch even brief glimpses of the secret of its mysterious charm. An open mind and the wisdom of great sympathy are conditions essential to making it at all possible. Contemplative, gentle, and metaphysical in their habit of thought, the Chinese have reflected profoundly and worked out many riddles of the universe in ways peculiarly their own. Realization of the value and need to us of a more definite knowledge of the mental processes of our Oriental brothers, increases wonderfully as one begins to comprehend the richness, depth, and beauty of their thought, ripened as it is by the hidden processes of evolution throughout the ages. To obtain literal translations from the mental storehouse of the Chinese has not been found easy of accomplishment; but it is a more difficult, and a most elusive task to attempt to translate their fancies, to see life itself as it appears from the Chinese point of view, and to retell these impressions without losing quite all of their color and charm. The "impressions," the "airy shapes" formed by the Oriental imagination, the life touches and secret graces of its fancy are at once the joy and despair of the one who attempts to record them. It has been an accepted belief of the world's best scholars that Chinese literature did not possess the fable, and chapters in interesting books have been written on this subject affirming its absence. Nevertheless, while studying the people, language, and literature of China it was the great pleasure of the writer to discover that the Chinese have many fables, a few of which are published in this book. As these stories, familiar in the home and school life of the children of China, show different phases of the character of a people in the very processes of formation, it is earnestly hoped that this presentation of them will help a little toward a better understanding and appreciation of Chinese character as a whole. (Il faut beaucoup d’étude de l’esprit oriental pour pouvoir saisir, même brièvement, le secret de son charme mystérieux. L'ouverture d'esprit et la sagesse d'une grande sympathie sont des conditions essentielles pour rendre cela possible. Contemplatif, doux et métaphysique dans leur habitude de penser, les chinois ont réfléchi profondément et élaboré de nombreuses énigmes de l'univers d'une manière qui leur est propre. La prise de conscience de la valeur et de la nécessité d'une connaissance plus précise des processus mentaux de nos frères orientaux augmente à mesure que l'on commence à comprendre la richesse, la profondeur et la beauté de leur pensée, mûries par les processus cachés de l'évolution à travers les âges. Obtenir des traductions littérales du dépôt mental des chinois n'a pas été trouvé facile à accomplir; mais c’est une tâche plus difficile, et plus difficile à réaliser que de tenter de traduire leurs fantaisies, de voir la vie elle-même telle qu’elle apparaît du point de vue de la Chine, et de revivre ces impressions sans perdre toute leur couleur et leur charme. Les "impressions", les "formes aériennes" formées par l'imagination orientale, les contacts de vie et les grâces secrètes de son imagination sont à la fois la joie et le désespoir de celui qui tente de les enregistrer. Les meilleurs spécialistes du monde pensent que la littérature chinoise ne possédait pas la fable, et des chapitres d'ouvrages intéressants ont été écrits sur ce sujet, affirmant ainsi son absence. Néanmoins, tout en étudiant le peuple, la langue et la littérature de Chine, l’écrivain a eu le grand plaisir de découvrir que les chinois possédaient de nombreuses fables, dont certaines sont publiées dans ce livre. Comme ces récits, familiers à la maison et à la vie scolaire des enfants de Chine, montrent les différentes phases du personnage d’un peuple dans le processus même de la formation, il est vivement espéré que cette présentation les aidera un peu à mieux compréhension et appréciation du caractère chinois dans son ensemble. Première traduction du titre en français: « Fables et histoires populaire chinoises » (Nous avons gardé ce titre traduit en français tel qu'il était.))

**Winner of the 2014 Aesop Prize for Children's and Young Adult Literature** **Winner of the 2013 Gelett Burgess Children's Book Award for Fables, Folklore & Fairytales** **2014 Creative Child Magazine Book of the Year Award Winner** For thousands of years, Chinese storytellers have delighted listeners with stories about the value of virtues like honesty, respect, courage and self-reliance. Chinese Fables collects nineteen of these wonderful tales, some of them dating back to the third century BCE, and retells them in contemporary English for a modern audience. Each of these stories offers a nugget of ancient folk wisdom and shares aspects of Chinese culture and lore. All of the tales express the foibles and wisdom of human experience with great humor and affection. And although the lessons are universal, the wit and flavor are uniquely Chinese. Beautifully illustrated by a master Chinese artist using a patchwork of ancient tones and textures, with a deft touch of humor, this book will give great joy to children and adults alike. Chinese children's stories include: The Practical Bride Stealing the Bell Kwan Yin, the Goddess of Mercy Cooking the Duck Scaring the Tigers The Dragon Slayer

One of the earliest literary works of mankind is in the form of fables. Bedside stories told to children by mothers or grannies contained a great deal of fables. Fables are made up of amusing anecdotes which are interesting, educational, thought-provoking, delightful and enjoyable to people of all ages. Ancient these fables may seem, but when they are summarised into their pithy titles, they become idioms of common usage among the people even to these modern days. This book contains more than 70 Chinese fables that have been handed down from ancient times, told with lively comic illustrations by Chinese cartoonist Tian Hengyu who is renowned for his expressive illustrations with crisp and clear-cut lines. You are sure to be amused as you go through all these ancient stories and you will also be amazed by the subtlety and succinctness of meaning conveyed by them.

The book contains one thousand and eighteen fables, selected from one hundred ninety-nine books, and arranged in chronological order. They are representative of works of similar nature created in different dynasties from ancient times up to the end of the Qing Dynasty. In its initial stage, fable was largely an appendage, an instrument of political and philosophical views, and not an independent form of literature. It was not until the Eastern Han and the Tang Dynasties that it finally came of age and declared itself independent and separate from the other forms of literature. In the book section, a few introductory remarks have been provided for each book and its author. Taken as a whole, they give a peephole view of the history of Chinese literature, and the country's political and social conditions at each corresponding period. The readers will also get a glimpse of the contending hundred schools of thought, and some knowledge of the traditions and customs of the Chinese people, in addition to the moral lesson and truth each fable provides.

Trieste Publishing has a massive catalogue of classic book titles. Our aim is to provide readers with the highest quality reproductions of fiction and non-fiction literature that has stood the test of time. The many thousands of books in our collection have been sourced from libraries and private collections around the world.The titles that Trieste Publishing has chosen to be part of the collection have been scanned to simulate the original. Our readers see the books the same way that their first readers did decades or a hundred or more years ago. Books from that period are often spoiled by imperfections that did not exist in the original. Imperfections could be in the form of blurred text, photographs, or missing pages. It is highly unlikely that this would occur with one of our books. Our extensive quality control ensures that the readers of Trieste Publishing's books will be delighted with their purchase. Our staff has thoroughly reviewed every page of all the books in the collection, repairing, or if necessary, rejecting titles that are not of the highest quality. This process ensures that the reader of one of Trieste Publishing's titles receives a volume that faithfully reproduces the original, and to the maximum degree possible, gives them the experience of owning the original work.We pride ourselves on not only creating a pathway to an extensive reservoir of books of the finest quality, but also providing value to every one of our readers. Generally, Trieste books are purchased singly - on demand, however they may also be purchased in bulk. Readers interested in bulk purchases are invited to contact us directly to enquire about our tailored bulk rates.